My Tri Club Dubai Coaches to Show Their Athletes How Its Done at Ironman 70.3

The coaches of My Tri Club Dubai will show their aspiring athletes how it’s done when they take part in the Ironman Dubai 70.3 race this weekend.

The triathlon event – which is being held along Jumeirah Beach on Friday – features a 1.9km swim in the Indian Ocean, a 90km cycle and a half marathon. With double Olympic gold medallist and World Champion Alistair Brownlee among the competitors the My Tri Dubai coaches will be facing some of the globe’s very best triathletes.

Among the coaches competing is Matthew Dewhurst, Sports Development Coach at Dubai’s My Sports Academy. He is hopeful taking part in an event such as the Ironman 70.3 will encourage the junior athletes within the club to do likewise in the future.

“As the children progress through the group structure we have in place, we ask for more commitment from them. Seeing their coaches and parents (for some of them) show the same commitment and to see what can be achieved is a massive motivational tool for them.”

Although he said motivation is not just a one-way street: “Even as a coaches, they motivate us massively too!”

Dewhurst said the philosophy of My Tri Club is to “create an innovative and exciting learning environment that encourages lifelong participation in the sport and allows athletes to achieve their full potential.”

He stressed that Dubai has all the ingredients to be an ideal training environment for up and coming triathletes and says that MTC are doing all they can to aid the development of young athletes in the U.A.E.

“Dubai already has a reputation for excellence when it comes to triathlon. As the facilities and opportunities here in the U.A.E continue to increase, MTC believe that with the right guidance and support, Dubai-based junior endurance athletes can go on to compete on the world stage.

“Using a long-term athlete development model MTC can help young athletes to achieve their full potential whilst maintaining their passion for the sport.”

Ben Parnell (Head of Triathlon at MTC) and Paolo Mangilinan (Development Coach) will also be competing in the Ironman 70.3 on Friday. Both men have completed the race before and they will be hoping to inspire their training groups with strong performances in this year’s event.

Dewhurst is pleased with how My Tri Club – and the sport of triathlon as a whole – is growing within Dubai and the U.A.E. He pointed to the success of recent events held by the club as a reason it has seen an increase in members.

“The club is growing all the time, we have new enquiries every week from athletes of all abilities. This has largely been due to big turn outs at events across the region where people have seen the black and yellow kit on the course as well as on the podiums.

We also had an extremely successful winter holiday camp, which we hosted at North London Colligate School on the first week of the break. This included a wide range of ability groups and it was extremely well received by parents and children alike.

To find out more about My Tri Club, or to get in touch about giving triathlon a try for the first time email tri@mysportsacademydubai.com or visit their website at: www.mysportsacademydubai.com/mytriclub/

Everyone at Gulf Youth Sport wishes all competitors in the Ironman Dubai 70.3 the very best of luck this weekend!